Process for the recovery of valuable constituents from certain waste liquors



li o-rented alean. l6 i923. 4 7

fl-HARLES 1. WHITTXER, 9F JERSEY CKTY, NEW 3, A$SIGIIGR TO ROYAL BAKING PQWDEE CGIQIPAZTY, OF NEW? YORK, 11?.

PROCESS FOR THE EECOVERY F VALUI'LBLE CQNSTITUENTS F3031 CERTAIN VJASTE v "51"., A CORTPORATXQN 015' NE??? JERSEY.

LIQ'UUES.

I-io hracving'. Application filed may 21,

To all w from it may concern lie it known that I, Quarries. T. Wrnrrinn, citizen of the United States, residing at crsey City, in the county of Hudson and state of lieu" Jersey, have invented a new and useful Process for the Recovery of Valuable Constituents from Certain 'Waste Liquors, of which the 'l ollowing is a spccification. y

The invention relates to a process of recovering valuable substances from Waste liquors which contain other substances interfering with concentration. by evaporation. The invention has been made in connection with the recovery of potassium sulphate from the Waste liquor resulting from the manufacture of tartaric acid.- Such liquors contain, among other things, in addition to the valuable constituents, a considerable iimountof calcium sulphate and organicmstter, including albuminoids, etc. Calcium sulphate being less soluble in hot water than in cold, forms scales or incrusta'tions on the apparatus. when the attempt is made to evaporate the liquor by concentration methods, to such an extent as materially to interfere with or revent, suc cessful operation. The organic matter in the liquor coagulates, with the result that it forms. as viscous mass exceedingly difficult to handle. 'Cliiefly by reason of the presence of these substances, quantities of valuable potash have been run to waste in such liquors, notwithstanding efforts to r cover it. The object of the present inverr lien is to provide a method of treating such liquors which avoids the diflicultics presented by the calcium sulphate and organic matter and permits the recovery of the vala RT 4C-uable constltuents economically and effectively;

The process comprises taking the waste liquor'ut a temperature low enough to avoid interfering precipitation of the calcium sulphate or coagulation of the organic matter,

and while these interfering substances are 1920. Serial Re. 383,369.

in solution atomising or spraying the liquor into heated air, or Waste furnace gas, in volume sufiicient to remove the moisture. The removal oi the moisture of some liquids by utoinizing or spraying'into a current of heated air has been practiced, as, for instance in the manufacture of dry milk; and apparatus for prarticing it has been fully described and is available. My invention is based upon the discovery that the heretofore insuperable difiiculties in heating waste pot-ash liquor, presented by the presence of calcium sulphate and organic matter, may be overcome and the valuable constituents therein easily recovered by atomizing or spraying the liquor While at a. temperature sufficiently lov. to avoid interfering precipitation of the calcium sulphate or coagulation of the organic matter into sufiicient dry or warm air to remove the moisture.

I claim 1. The process of recovering potassium compounds from waste potash liquor resulting "from the manufacture of tartaric acid which comprises maintaining the temperature of a supply of the liquor low enough to avoid precipitation of calcium sulphate or coagulation of organic matter and atomizing or spraying the liquor into a volume of dry air sufiicient to remove the moisture therefrom.

2. The process of evaporating liquor containing calcium sulphate which comprises atoinizing or spraying the liquor into a volume of heated air suiiicient to remove the moisture, said liquor immediately previous to atomizing being at a temperature low enough to prevent precipitation of calcium sulphate 3. A process for recovering potassium COR'lPOUHdS from Waste potash liquor resulting from the manufacture of tartaric acid comprisn'u spraying the liquor into dry on to remove the moisture therefrom.

CHARLES T. WHITTIER, 

